Housing and Urban Issues
Stresses on urban communities continue to affect housing, food security, child services, homelessness, business development and crime. Coverage includes stories about new solutions to how cities are run, how they develop as urban centers and about the people who live there.
Since 2018, state spending on hotels for unsheltered individuals has tripled. Conditions are often inadequate and some worry homeless people are isolated and unable to access other support services.
For nearly a year, 2,000 families in Chelsea received $400 a month in support. More than 73 percent of the funds were spent “at places where food is the primary product.” A second round of the program will begin in January.
The old buildings that housed multiple sellers under a single roof were more than just places to shop. They were community-making institutions.
Some public-sector agencies have a flair when it comes to using Twitter. From states and cities to special districts and public safety, here's a nonexhaustive look at a few of our favorites.
A 260-mile corridor between Syracuse and Montreal has been approved by a consortium of international organizers in an effort to establish an “advanced air mobility” corridor for unmanned commercial cargo transport.
The law, which capped rent increases and laid out terms by which certain landlords could evict tenants, was enacted by the City Council last year in an attempt to enact eviction protections to prevent homelessness.
Black lawmakers started getting elected to the state Legislature in the 1960s, but the General Assembly has been mostly composed of white lawmakers. Next year, at least 83 of the 236 members will be nonwhite.
The Business Outlook Survey found that 75 percent of respondents believe that the state’s leaders have fallen short in improving affordability for businesses; 82 percent said the state is somewhat unaffordable for companies.
It became the biggest city in the U.S. to eliminate fares system-wide in 2020. But Kansas City’s experience has some unique local factors that don’t necessarily point the way for other cities to follow suit.
Black Atlantans continue to be left out of the city’s economic success of the past several years, with inequities only exacerbated by inflation. Atlanta has led the nation’s inequality for at least a decade.
Written by the Climate Mayors and C40 Cities, it will help local governments take advantage of the Inflation Reduction Act’s historic financial support for climate action.
A study found that Black communities containing industrial plants were exposed to seven to 21 times more toxic emissions than similar locations with white residents. The study includes the stretch of the Mississippi River called “cancer alley.”
Many of them want to develop their properties to help revitalize their communities. Partnering with them can be a challenge for governments, but there’s much they can do to help these institutions build capacity to help.
The fifth annual Health Equity Summit this week reported the housing crisis in the Pennsylvania community has not been dealt with adequately. About 34 percent of households are cost-burdened.
The state’s child-care search website launched this week, listing more than 1,000 providers and matching services available in Spanish and English in an effort to more easily connect families with services they need.
Deregulating commerce in selected places doesn’t work everywhere. But Honduras is trying a version of economic zones with some new wrinkles.
The New York City mayor said the reforms to the rental assistance program will make it easier to access the CityFHEPS voucher program but did not address removing the 90-day rule which housing advocates have slammed.
The city has already planted more than 14,000 trees in historically marginalized and underserved communities. But ensuring the trees survive the next 3 years is crucial to the program’s success.
Honorees in this year’s Digital Cities Survey from the Center for Digital Government elevated their municipalities’ resilience, while bolstering services and prioritizing engagement with their residents.
Several institutions and individuals have stepped up to rectify past injustice by bringing investments — and people — back to a decimated Louisville neighborhood.
Transit must be part of a larger narrative for what cities can be, according to experts who gathered at the American Public Transit Association TRANSform Conference last month.
The housing tends to be older, is more often rented, making it less likely to be maintained and more vulnerable to serious damage in the wake of a disaster. But there are steps communities can take to help.
The City Council has voted to activate the previously dormant commission in an effort to better protect historic cultural sites. Honolulu is the only county in the state not to have a group of this type.
They’re happening in gentrifying neighborhoods, creating a flashpoint of ethnic and racial conflict. Some cities are trying to deal with the problem, but there are no easy solutions.
In June, a museum housing the world’s largest collection of works by Chicano artists opened in Riverside, Calif. Years of community-based work and a partnership with collector Cheech Marin set the stage for success.
The all-volunteer group is shaping development projects with recommendations and refinements, without blocking timelines. The advice may help developers consider their neighborhood impact.
What was once the town of Madison has become parts of other communities, forcing a small group of residents to change addresses, street names and polling places just a week before Election Day.
The cities were ranked based on their pedestrian fatalities, violent and property crime, number of registered sex offenders and number of law enforcement employees. Gilbert, Ariz., earned the top spot.
Twice-daily service between New Orleans and Mobile, Ala., would boost travel alternatives, help the economy and attract tourism dollars. But finalizing a deal with the freight operators that own the tracks has proven difficult.
They increasingly bear most of the burdens of the disasters that climate change brings. Those that combine strong building codes and zoning that keeps people out of dangerous areas will fare the best and better protect their most vulnerable residents.
The City Council has issued a halt to renewals of existing permits and those in the application pipeline. The moratorium, which could begin as soon as Nov. 3, would phase out nearly all 1,300 residential short-term rentals.
